Guided missile launching system





1. IN COMBINATION WITH AN AUTOMATIC GUIDED MISSILE HANDLING AND LAUNCHING SYSTEM OF THE CHARACTER DESCRIBED, A MISSILE LAUNCHER, A READY SERVICE MECHANISM FOR STORING AND SELECTIVELY CYCLING IN EITHER A CLOCKWISE OR COUNTERCLOCKWISE MANNER ONE OR A PLURALITY OF GUIDED MISSILES, WHICH PLURALITY MAY BE OF A SIMILAR OR ASSORTED DIFFERENT TYPES AND SHIFTING ONE OR MORE THEREOF IN EITHER OF TWO DIRECTIONS IN EITHER ONE OR BOTH OF TWO ORDINATE PLANES AND/OR EITHER OR BOTH OF TWO ABSCISSA PLANES FOR FURTHER SELECTION OF ANY ONE OF SAID ASSORTMENT OF GUIDED MISSILES, MEANS FOR ELEVATING A SELECTED ONE OF THE MISSILES IN AN ADDITIONAL VERTICAL PLANE FROM A TRANSFERRED POSITION IN THE UPPERMOST OF SAID ORDINATE PLANES TO AN OVERHEAD POSITION IN SPACED ADJACENCY WITH RESPECT TO SAID TRANSFERRED POSITION. MEANS VERTICALLY SPACED FROM SAID READY SERVICE MECHANISM FOR SHIFTING A SELECTED ONE OF SAID ASSORTED TYPES OF GUIDED MISSILES FROM SAID LAST MENTIONED MEANS OF THE READY SERVICE MECHANISM TO ADDITIONAL HANDLING APPARATUS OF SAID SYSTEM OPERATIVELY ASSOCIATED WITH SAID HANDLING SYSTEM FOR FURTHER DISPOSITION OF SAID ELEVATED GUIDED MISSILE UTILIMATELY TO SAID MISSILE LAUNCHER, A MISSILE CARRYING TRACK MEANS CONNECTED BETWEEN SAID LAUNCHER AND SAID READY SERVICE MECHANISM, SAID READY SERVICE MECHANISM FURTHER HAVING A PAIR OF FUNCTIONALLY INTERRELATED COOPERATIVE LONGITUDINALLY SPACED FRAME SYSTEMS FOR SHUTTING SAID ASSORTMENT OF GUIDED MISSILES IN ONE OR MORE OF TWO PARALLEL HORIZONTAL PLANES, AND FOR ONE OR MORE OF TWO SUBSTANTIALLY PARALLEL VERTICAL PLANES, SAID SPACED FRAMES PROVIDING AT LEAST A PAIR OF SPACED UPPER AND LOWER SHUTTING TIRES, COOPERATIVE HOIST MEANS POSITIONED AT OPPOSITE SIDES OF EACH OF SAID PAIR OF COOPERATIVE SPACED FRAMES WITH THE HOIST MEANS ON THE CORRESPONDING SIDES OF SAID LONGITUDINALLY SPACED FRAMES BEING OPERATIVELY COUPLED FOR CONTEMPORANEOUS MOVEMENT OF SEQUENTIALLY TRANSFER SAID PLURALITY OF GUIDED MISSILES BETWEEN SAID UPPER AND LOWER SHUTTLING TIERS OF SAID READY SERVICE MECHANISM, SAID SPACED FRAMES EACH CARRYING AN INDIVIDUAL CENTRALLY DISPOSED HOIST MEANS OF SAID MEANS FOR ELEVATING A SELECTED ONE OF SAID MISSILES FROM A TRANSFER POSITION, MEANS FOR CORRELATING THE FUNCTION OF SAID INDIVIDUAL HOIST MEANS TO PROVIDE CONJOINT MOVEMENT THEREOF IN UNISON DURING ELEVATIONAL TRANSFERRING OF A SELECTED MISSILE FROM SAID READY SERVICE MECHANISM TO SAID SHIFTING MECHANISM, A BALLISTICALLY ENCLOSING STRUCTURE FOR SAID READY SERVICE MECHANISM, SAID STRUCTURE HAVING AN APERTURED WALL THEREIN CONFIGURED TO PERMIT PASSAGE THERETHROUTH OF A MISSILE WEAPON HAVING FINS AND WINGS ASSEMBLED THERETO, BLAST DOOR TYPE CLOSURE MEANS POSITIONED TO NORMALLY CLOSE AND SEAL SAID APERTURE AND OPERATIVELY ACTUATED IN CORRELATIVE RELATION WITH OPERATION OF SAID READY SERVICE MECHANISM FOR MOVEMENT TO OPEN THE CLOSURE MEANS FOR THE APERTURE THEREOF FOR PASSAGE OF AN ORDNANCE WEAPON THERETHROUGH FOR LOADING ON THE MISSILE LAUNCHER AND FOR SUBSEQUENT CLOSURE PRIOR TO MISSILE LAUNCHING, THEREBY TO ABSORB THE BLAST OCCURRING WITH MISSILE FIRING, AT LEAST ONE FEEDER MECHANISM FOR TRANSPORTING SAID SELECTED ORDNANCE WEAPON THROUGH SAID APERTURE IN SAID BALLISTICALLY ENCLOSING STRUCTURE WALL AND TO SAID LAUNCHER FOR LAUNCHING, AND HYDRAULICALLY CONTROLLED MEANS FOR OPERATING SAID MOVABLE BLAST DOOR TYPE CLOSURE MEANS. 